Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of
wisdom. Psalm 90:12
I’m glad it’s over. I don't like the month of May. My
apologies to all the May birthdays and anniversaries. But I haven’t liked it
for a while now. Ok, to come clean it's not really the month. It’s me.
Those that know me best know that I'm kind of sentimental.
And from four decades of existence I can testify that sentimental and May don't
mix. May in the USA is the time of year for endings. Graduations, year-end
parties, conclusions. And we 'feeling' types, love beginnings but not too jovial
about endings. Like this year, my daughter will stop being an 11th grader (I’m
in denial that this begins her last year of High School). My other daughter ends
her middle-school days this month. And my son, well we’ve got him for a while! In
May kids graduate and many families prepare for summer moves. There are a lot
of good-byes in May.
May is the time of year we realize we did it. We were warned
to be careful not to, but we did it. We
blinked.
Young parents are warned by empty nesters and grandparents, “don’t
blink because before you know it your kids will be grown.” So few of us really
take it serious, and even if we do there frankly isn’t much we can do to stop
it. We all blink. Each May we reopen our eyes to discover time has flown. They
are grown. That’s why I don’t like May.
To further torture my sentimental personality (or perhaps a clear
confirmation of it), I downloaded an app for my iPhone recently called Legacy.
To set it up you enter you children’s ages and it counts down (in weeks, days,
hours, minutes, seconds) how much time you have left with each child until they
turn 18. (The weeks remaining as of today is 47 for Kasey, 151 for Kelly, 412
for JT). It’s a constant reminder that
the time for investing in my children is limited and relatively small. With my
app, I can know just how long the blink is.
The truth is our time for investing in anything that matters
is limited-whether it spiritual, relational or even financial. When it comes to
making a difference, investing over time makes the greatest impact. So maybe I
shouldn’t hate the month of May. Maybe I should be thankful for it. Because
it’s a yearly reminder that time matters. Love matters. And love… over time
changes both of us.
“Lord, thank you for the gift and the opportunities of time.
Help us to invest it well…in people and in purposes that matter. For the glory
of your Son’s great name. Amen.”
